UEFA has abolished the away goal rule in all club competitions from the 2021/22 season.
Instead, ties that are still level after two matches will go to extra time and penalties.
“The away goals rule has been an intrinsic part of UEFA competitions since it was introduced in 1965. However, the question of its abolition has been debated at various UEFA meetings over the last few years,” UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said.
“Although there was no unanimity of views, many coaches, fans and other football stakeholders have questioned its fairness and have expressed a preference for the rule to be abolished.”
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He added: “The impact of the rule now runs counter to its original purpose as, in fact, it now dissuades home teams – especially in first legs – from attacking, because they fear conceding a goal that would give their opponents a crucial advantage.
”There is also criticism of the unfairness, especially in extra time, of obliging the home team to score twice when the away team has scored.
“There is also criticism of the unfairness, especially in extra time, of obliging the home team to score twice when the away team has scored.
“It is fair to say that home advantage is nowadays no longer as significant as it once was.
“Taking into consideration the consistency across Europe in terms of styles of play, and many different factors which have led to a decline in home advantage, the UEFA Executive Committee has taken the correct decision in adopting the view that it is no longer appropriate for an away goal to carry more weight than one scored at home.”
4 Comments
Nice decision!!…let all teams fight it out at the same time !!
Its like the rule is favouring lesser teams who go away and get a 2-1 win against big teams, but return home and lose by a single goal but still qualify on away goal rule.
It would seem Uefa is ensuring they give the bigger teams all the help they need to win lesser teams.
Some people will say its making things fair for all teams, if so, why did they make the rule in the first place?
Whatever the case may be, every team will have to go all out now for a win and not rely on a technicality to get through.
These are some of the stuff that makes the game so interesting and nerves wrecking, all these changes are getting too much, VAR, AWAY GOAL, the next thing you will see is they will add one more player , making it 12 players and then widening or shortened the goal post.
Wow this is one of the best decision from uefa thus far, it reminds me of how Super eagles were denied a place at the Germany 2006 world cup, truth is that particular qualifier that year was one of the best Qualifier with glamor, that team that year would have done excellently well at the world cup,with okocha having finally settle down as the captain. And so i wish caf would follow through and scrap it. My mind still tells me that if that team that year consisting of martins, okocha kanu, Ayegbeni, Yobo, nsofor had gone to that world cup that year ehn they would and may go past the quarter final. Let’s go back to watch those qualifier game that year, we were beating teams home and away except for angola. We beat Algeria here 3 nil and at their home 5-2.